


Orange

by curesparkle



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Angst, Bara Sans (Undertale), Chronic Illness, Chronic Pain, F/M, Fluff, Mildly Fast Burn For Sans, Papyrus Likes MLP:FiM, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Reader Is Not Frisk (Undertale), Reader is a pianist, Reader-Insert, Sans (Undertale) Remembers Resets, Slow Burn, cringe culture is dead
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-16
Updated: 2020-10-17
Packaged: 2021-03-06 23:27:11
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,878
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26457166
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/curesparkle/pseuds/curesparkle
Summary: * under the brilliant crimson sky i was falling so hard* and i knew that my world was you
Relationships: Sans (Undertale)/Reader
Comments: 3
Kudos: 32





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> hii this is baby's first reader insert so plz be kind!! x_x  
> this is beta read with minor edits by SkellySimp (THANKS bb)
> 
> I was heavily inspired by _Your Lie in April_ so this fic is music heavy  
> reader's interest are based on mine she likes magical girls, idols, and cute things  
> also I'm chronically ill 'n just want more rep aaa *sweats*

You let the upbeat, 80s pop-rock song that plays in your earbuds ease your nerves as you plop into a bus seat. You’re visiting your besties Bratty and Catty today - the three of you impulsively planned a day trip to chat over lunch. Bratty and Catty live in New New Home near Mt. Ebott and you’re two hours away in a not-so monster friendly town so you’ve got quite a trip ahead of you. You’ve never been to New New Home so you’re pretty excited! You open your messaging app to shoot a text to the girls to let them know you’re on your way.

 **you**  
omw to New New Home! ᕕ( ᐛ )ᕗ

 **bratty**  
OMG!! Ur gonna LOVE it here!!!!

 **catty**  
We're SUPER excited to see you!!!  
we'll meet you @ Muffet's!

 **bratty**  
u still have the address right??

You confirm that you have the address and they send a few more texts with dozens of emojis and cute gifs and you can’t help but laugh. You _love_ these girls. You stuff your phone in your cardigan and let your head rest against the window as you reminisce about what led you to this point.

★

You were hospitalized when it happened. 

You assumed you’d imagined it. A painkiller induced trip.

 _You scowl at the fall risk bracelet as you attempt to tear it off. Naturally, it doesn’t break._ _You let out a huff as you urged your legs to cooperate - you_ know _it's a stupid idea but you just wanted to walk, damnit! With a quiet ‘hup’ you jumped out of bed. A shiver ran up your spine as your feet hit the cold, linoleum floor; a sharp pang in your already aching head followed but you ignored it as you squinted down at your feet. A sigh of relief hit you as you wiggled your toes - that was good, right?_

_Welp, you’re doing this._

_The painkiller running through your system dulls your senses, you can barely comprehend what was happening around you. You recall that earlier the building shook and a blinding light engulfed the surrounding rooms. In your fever like haze you see blurry figures run past you, panicked voices sounding distant as you shuffle on._

_It didn’t matter to you, anyway. ~~You didn’t matter.~~_

_As you rounded the corner you were met with an orange glow illuminating the room. On that chilly winter afternoon you saw the most mesmerizing sunset and in the distance you swore you saw iridescent twinkling lights flutter about. And as you stood there, you heard faint, orchestral music - it’s a melody you’d_ never _forget, like something you’d hear in an RPG signaling the finale of the journey. Warm but happy tears bubbling up in your eyes clouded your view and as you went to get a closer look your legs gave out. A sickening crack follows shortly afterwards, your conscious fading in and out as you blearily see a nurse hover above you. The last thing you hear before losing consciousness is the News broadcasts:_

_Monsters had emerged from under Mt.Ebott._

★

You met Bratty and Catty at the mall in the following summer.

_At that point in your life you had port-a-cath for daily at home saline infusions using a pump. On that day you decided that you needed to get out of your dingy apartment so you’d do said infusions at the mall. You had chosen to wear a plain white t-shirt under a pair of short overalls that you paired with your rainbow cardigan, various jewelry, and glittery jelly shoes. Unfortunately, with no way to hide the tubing, you got a lot of weird looks that made you extremely insecure._

_So, understandably, when the monsters approached you as you took a shaky sip of your strawberry lemonade you assumed the worst. As the girls began to speak you braced yourself for the inevitable barrage of comments and invasive questions._

_“Hey! We like, wanted to say that we_ love _your outfit!” Bratty giggles._

 _Catty’s eyes were twinkling, “Yeah! And like, your makeup is_ super _pretty!”_

_You blink._

_Bratty smiles at you, “We like, wanted to invite you to join us!”_

_“‘Cause we saw how those jerks looked at you!” Catty adds._

_“Totally uncool...” Bratty shoots a glare at one of the offending groups passing by._

_You can’t help it. You clutch your stomach and laugh and you nearly lose hold of your drink. When you finally calm down you look up at the two monsters and give them a genuine smile. Your cheeks hurt from laughing but you tell them your name and say you’d love to join them._

_★_

The memory makes you smile. Luckily, you no longer need the daily infusions but you still have the port and it’s left a nasty scar that you’re insecure of. And when you finally found the courage to tell Bratty and Catty about your chronic illnesses they stuck by you.

When the bus finally reaches your stop you quickly shuffle to stop your music and hop off. The chilly spring air greets you and you stretch your arms as you bask in the sunlight and take in your surroundings. The bus stop is right in front of a charming little brick building with a sign that says “Librarby” and as you pull up your map you see dozens of business and homes scattered about. You type in the address of your meeting spot and head left of the stop. As you walk you pass an array of colorful houses in varying shapes and sizes. There's a two story cabin-like home that catches your attention and you stop to admire it; it has twinkling fairy lights wrapped around the porch and on the roof is a skull and crossbones flag. It makes you chuckle, wondering who lives there. You continue to follow your phone's directions and you eventually end up near a shopping district with equally colorful buildings, various flowers nearly everywhere and a fountain is sitting directly in the middle.

You can easily say you _love_ New New Home.

As you carefully cross the street you see two familiar figures standing outside a building and you start to make a beeline towards them. “Bratty! Catty!” you call out as you rush over to them.

“Oh my god!! ___!” Bratty and Catty say in unison.

You embrace the girls in a group hug and you all laugh. When you pull apart you take a moment to catch your breath before speaking up, “God, I missed y’all! What have I missed?”

“Oh my god, ___, like _so_ much!” Bratty answers.

“Like a ton!” Catty adds, giggling.

Bratty and Catty share a laugh. “But like, let’s grab lunch first!”

You eagerly nod in agreement and follow the girls into the cafe. As you step in you see that the walls are painted in vertical stripes in various shades of purple and they’re decorated with iridescent spiderwebs. Taking in a bit more you see shiny, black, circular tables and chairs that are also adorned with the same webbing.

“Customers!” a tiny voice calls out.

It takes you a moment but you realize the owner of the voice is beside you and you look at the table next to you. On top of it sits a tiny, pom-pom-like creature and as you stare at it, confused, it suddenly hops up and sprouts legs and scurries off towards the counter. It hits you that that’s a spider and there are _several_ scurrying about the hardwood floor. You feel a shiver run up your spine as you tense up. Bratty and Catty are waiting for you by the counter giving you an odd look. You give yourself a moment to compose yourself before you cautiously step towards the counter, careful not to disturb the spiders. As you approach it you can see dozens of pastries and desserts. You crouch down to get a better look and you see various kinds of donuts, muffins, cookies, and cakes decorated in spider motifs.

You’re considering your options when a sweet voice catches your attention, “Ahuhuhu~ Welcome to my parlor, dearies!”

When you stand up you meet a cute lavender spider monster wearing gothic lolita, her five eyes blink at you as she smiles while her six arms are packing orders and making drinks. You blink, unsure what to say.

She tilts her head curiously. “First time here, dearie?” Her ‘s’s are hissed and you can only give her a nod. She giggles. “Ahuhuhu~ I can see. Well,” she claps two of her hands together and holds another one out for you to shake it, giving you a welcoming smile, “I’m Muffet. Welcome to my parlor!”

You nervously shake her hand and tell her your name.

Bratty and Catty order coffee and donuts and you opt for a hot tea and a muffin.

You let your tea cool before you take a sip, it tingles on your tongue.

★

“And _I’m_ the one that got the noise complaint! Can you believe that?” you grumble as you bite into your muffin. After Bratty and Catty caught you up on their lives they asked how you were doing, now you’re ranting about your shitty apartment. It hadn’t _always_ been that bad but unfortunately, the building went under new management and it went downhill from there.

Bratty takes a sip of her coffee and sighs, “Honestly, ___, you should just, like, move here.”

Catty claps her paws together, grinning, “Oh my god, Bratty, that's like, the _best_ idea you’ve ever had!” She turns to you with a pleading look, “___ you gotta do it!”

You sip your tea and consider it. Breaking your lease is _extremely_ tempting and you’d have a fairly easy time doing so, plus in the event you’d _have_ to pay you were pretty set. And you really do love New New Home. But on your walk here you didn’t see any unoccupied housing...

You pinch the bridge of your nose, “It’s tempting, but…” 

Bratty answers your question before you can ask it, “We could, like, ask around for you!” 

“Yeah!” Catty adds, taking a bite of her donut, “There’s like, gotta be someone looking for a roomie! And you’re like, a really nice human so they’d be totally cool with you! Like, if we had room we’d let you stay with us!”

You snort, “Okay. I’ll hold y’all to that.”

Bratty and Catty whoop and holler in response then double high-five, their energy is contagious and you can’t help but laugh at their antics. Moving to New New Home, huh? You smile as you turn your gaze to the window, the water of the fountain is sparkling in the sunlight and you see cherry blossoms twirling in the wind.

“But, like,” Catty takes your hand in both her paws and you focus your gaze back at her, she looks at you worryingly, “besides your totally gross apartment...how have _you_ been?”

You blink and tilt your head, confused, but then it hits you. She's asking about your health. “Oh!” you smile warmly at the girls, “I can’t lie to y’all. My pain is like, nearing a 9/10…” You trail off as you rub your neck, you’d woken up that morning with an agonizing ache that refused to ease even with your morning exercise and a hot shower, so you caved and applied a lidocaine patch - you try to stifle a laugh ‘cause it reminds you of an episode of the anime _Monthly Girls Nozaki-Kun_ and the visual of you, a tiny, non-threatening girl getting mistaken for a delinquent causes you to chuckle. You hear Bratty and Catty gasp, snapping you out of your daze. The girls are giving you uneasy looks. “But ‘m fine! ‘Sides I’d _never_ miss out on seeing my besties! I can’t let a lil pain ruin my day…”

Bratty and Catty glance at each other and you can feel the tension. You know that the girls mean well and you’re thankful that you have such supportive friends but sometimes you feel guilty for dumping this on them.

“But,” you pop the last of your muffin in your mouth, “monster food seems to help a lil.”

Bratty’s the one to clap her hands this time, “See! That’s like, totally a sign!”

“Yeah!” Catty chimes in and she and Bratty share a laugh.

You smile at the girls as you finish your tea, it was exactly what you needed. Even if you can’t move to New New Home, you make a mental note to make an effort to visit Bratty and Catty more often. You hop out of your seat and raise your arms up, letting all the tension of the past days go. You want to grab some muffins to-go so you go up to the counter but as you’re ordering something catches your eye.

A gorgeous, black upright piano sits in the corner in the back of the store. The soft, orange glow of golden hour illuminates the instrument. On top of it sits a few vases of flowers, water damage waiting to happen, you desperately want to point this out but you hold back. Instead, you just stare at it and you can feel your hands shaking. You haven’t seen a real piano in a while, especially one as pretty as this one. You used to own a grand piano but you’d sold it to pay off medical bills, plus even if you kept it, it wouldn’t have fit in your apartment ~~and you’d given up on being a pianist, anyway~~.

“Hey, Muffet,” your voice is quiet, “that piano...Is it for decoration or can I…” You trail off, twiddling your fingers.

Muffet nods and smiles. “Do you play, ___?”

“Mmm,” you hum as you take a step towards the instrument and sit on the bench, “I used to.”

You lift the piano’s cover up and gently tap a key. It sends a shiver up your spine.

_Suddenly, the keys are getting blurry, you miss a note and you hear harsh whispering, your head is aching and your heart feels like it's going to jump out of your chest. You try to get back on track but you can’t. Your hands are shaking, the room is spinning, your vision is getting dark. You’re..._

_You’re not there_ , you have to remind yourself.

You blink away the memory and tap a few more keys. You opt for something easy and start with Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star and when you feel ready you move on to Twelve Variations on "Ah vous dirai-je, Maman". The world around you disappears as you get into the music, it's just you and the piano.

★

Sans despises that damn sunset.

Sure, the first time he saw it it was _mesmerizing_. But that view quickly grew old.

Sans recalls that when they surfaced during the winter, Papyrus threw a party to celebrate the upcoming holiday and Sans was _so_ proud. There was an assortment of food and drinks, along with samples of Mettaton’s MTT-brand Winter Super Adult eggnog. Asgore was dressed up as Santa as he passed out presents and Toriel had knitted everyone an ugly sweater and Sans wore his proudly. The tree had been decorated by everyone, it was covered in tinsel, ornaments of all kinds and twinkling lights - Mettaton was the star. Toriel got _super_ drunk and Undyne and Alphys belted ad-libbed carols with her as everyone stood under the tree and ate soup.

Celebrating the new year with everyone had been just as fun, the fireworks were _mesmerizing_ and Sans marveled in the colors and sounds; the following morning they all went ice-skating and later Undyne challenged everyone to a game of ice-hockey. It was a mess. Sans had managed to score a goal and did a victory dance, some kind of meme he’d seen online. Alphys called him “cringe” but he didn’t care, he was having a blast! When the game was over, Toriel took out a thermos and poured everyone warm alphabet soup and they all sat together under the chilly starry night.

Sans studied astronomy, visited a Space Museum and purchased a fancy new telescope to see the stars. He found himself watching a _ton_ of sci-fi movies, especially ones on space; _The Martian_ was his fav and that led him into seeing every single Marvel movie ever made - even the notably bad ones. _Ghost Rider_ gave him the courage to get his motorcycle license, he loved the freedom of riding alone at night under the stars. He purchased a leather jacket, but he never got to wear it.

‘Cause one summer day, he woke up back in Snowdin.

Papyrus threw the same party, but Sans couldn’t care.

It was easier to just stop trying to enjoy life.

Well, not entirely. He still got his motorcycle.

He angrily kicks at a lone pebble, it lands in front of Muffet’s Parlor. With a huff, he trudges along. He just wants to go home, curl up on his dingy mattress and rot. He could easily just ‘port right home and do just that but there’s an indescribable feeling urging him not to.

So here he is, taking his anger out on pebbles.

As he passes Muffet’s, he stops. He notices that Muffet propped the door open and he can hear someone playing the piano. Is that Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star? He chuckles. Sans assumes it’s just a kid playing so he keeps walking, but suddenly the music changes and he pauses. He blinks, he’s never heard this before. He decides to peer into the window and in that moment time stands still for him.

There you are. ~~You’re beautiful.~~ You’re smiling as you play.

Sans feels an overwhelming wave of comfort hit him as he listens to you play. It’s like your song is soothing his soul, but at the very same time an unfamiliar ache is attacking his soul as he looks at you. He chooses to ignore the feeling and continues to listen to you play, eventually he realizes that you’re still playing Twinkle, Twinkle, it’s just a version he’s unfamiliar with.

Suddenly, you stop playing and he frowns, but then he sees you look at your watch.

“Shit!” you cry, your voice is soft. “I--I’m gonna be late for my bus!”

He can’t help but chuckle when he hears you curse, but when he sees you hop off the bench and turn he quickly ‘ports to the nearby alley to avoid being seen. He sighs as he steps back out to head home. If you’re catching a bus does that mean you’re not local? Will he ever see you again? He wants to hear you play, he wants to know how it ends.

You run right into him and Sans feels that ache attack him. You’re jogging in place as you spout apologies and Sans takes the moment to get a better look at you. You’re _tiny_ , he’s easily a foot taller than you. Your nails are clear and sparkly, your fingers are covered in band-aids, most are pink but a few are of characters he recognizes from a cartoon Papyrus had recently started watching; you’re wearing an oversized pastel rainbow cardigan and your backpack is covered in all sorts of buttons and enamel pins, it's a strong contrast to his worn out parka and gym shorts combo. You’re very colorful, in his eyes you’re sparkling.

A quote from an anime Alphys told him plays in his mind.

"When you’re in love with somebody, everything looks colorful."

Sans scoffs. Why’d he even _think_ of that?

Shit, he needs to talk.

“s’ok, kid.” is all he can say and you smile at him.

Sans can hear your music playing as he quickly checks you before you dash off.

The [lyrics](https://youtu.be/gtsX8H7xSek) added with what he finds sends him into a fit of teary-eyed laughter.

" _Tell me again was it love at first sight? When I walked by and you caught my eye!"_

* **? 0 ATK 0 DEF**  
* Did you figure it out yet?  
* She's your soulmate.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ᕕ( ᐛ )ᕗ


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry 4 the wait!!! 人(_ _*)  
> I've been a lil sick and my beta reader / editor was busy  
> but that gave me time to write a few chapters & plan out a good majority of the fic!
> 
> this chapter is a teeny bit self-indulgent, as I mentioned b4 reader's interest are based on my own  
> anyway, Cringe Culture is dead!

Every morning you find yourself at the gym in your apartment, hoping to work out some of the tension in your body. You’re currently pacing yourself as you run on the treadmill, muscles feeling taunt, when you hear your phone chime. You stop the treadmill and take a seat right on the floor, ignoring the odd looks you get as you try to catch your breath. You feel like your heart is going to jump out of your chest so you take a look at your watch to check your heart rate.

194 bpm, pretty average in your case.

You close your eyes, memories of a time you wished you’d forget floods your head.

_You can’t remember how you got into your room, but you find yourself surrounded by medical professionals and bright lights. Using your arm connected to the IV in your hand you try to grasp at your chest, but you are quickly restrained by one of the nurses in the room. Through the tears you peer over and see the monitor off to your side. Your heart rate is soaring as your blood pressure steadily drops. Your words, jumbled and incoherent tumble from your lips, hot tears spilling over. You continue to babble, but no one is listening. They keep telling you that you’re not in the right state of mind._

_Your anxiety was getting the better of you._

_That you’re acting delusional._

_They told you that you needed to grow up._

You grasp your chest, it’s aching in a way you can’t describe.

 _You’re not gonna end up there_ , you try to tell yourself, _you’re not gonna go back_.

You grab your phone and open your music app, tap shuffle and let the songs that play relax you as you take deep breaths in an effort to calm yourself. When your pulse is finally at a safe number, you get back to your feet and decide to check your text messages. Bratty and Catty have sent you a few texts. You read them as you grab your belongings and walk out of the gym towards the elevator.

 **Bratty**  
* Hey!! I think we found a place!  
* it looks SUPER promising!!!

 **Catty**  
* here’s the info!!  
* (IMG_03XX20XX)

You open the image as you step into the elevator and press the 5th floor button. The elevator’s lights flicker and you rock back and forth on your heels as you study the image. It’s a colorful flyer of someone looking to rent out their third bedroom; the text is in various colors, there’s clipart of bones pasted all over and is that font...Papyrus? You quirk a brow. It reminds you of the ‘graphic design is my passion’ meme. Sure, you dabble in graphic design yourself, but you are by no means a professional _and_ you don’t follow the “rules” so you have no room to talk, really.

The elevator dings and the doors open, you step out and walk down the hallway, keys in hand so you can unlock your door quickly. You squint at the flyer, eyeing it over a few times. There are blurry photos of the room and at the bottom it says to contact CookSkeleton95 on the UnderNet, but other than that there’s not a lot of information. You said you’d trust Bratty and Catty but…

You shrug. Eh, you’ll think it over.

You unlock your door and make a beeline to your couch, flopping unceremoniously onto it. You hear a faint jingle approach, tilting your head in that direction you let out a quiet ‘oof’ as you feel a sudden weight hop onto your chest, “Hey Imp.”

Imp, short for Impact, blinks at you and responds back with a short ‘mrrp’. You raise your hand up and scratch his chin, your companion purring from the attention. You found him at a local shelter, the black cat named Batman at the time left an impression on you the moment you saw him. The most notable thing that caught your attention were his eyes - one eye was yellow and the other was blue. Your first time meeting him left quite an impact on you and you ended up going through the adoption process. Over time he became a rock in your life, and you fell in love with him ever since.

“Welp, let’s go over our to-do list, Imp.” You sit up and open your calendar app and grab your notebook with your list. Impact sits in your lap and looks up at you as you look at your to-do list. First, past you had graciously wrote a grocery list, mostly drinks and snacks, second on your list is picking up meds at the pharmacy and at 4:15 p.m you have a virtual appointment with your cardiologist, Dr. Drocsid; it’s virtual ‘cause he’s five hours away and you’d have to spend the night in an unfamiliar town ‘cause you don’t drive. Well, you do have a scooter, but you obviously can’t take it out on the highway and you only use it for short rides, like today for instance. Thankfully, you have a way to check your blood pressure and heart rate beforehand so your doctor allows it, you wish all your doctors were that understanding.

You get a quick shower, half-dry your hair and pull on a cute sweater and jeans and slip into your fav sneakers. After that, you tell Impact to be good as you open your door to head out to take on the day.

★

“OK, we’ll up your dose and start you out on a new med,” Dr. Drocsid is typing away on his computer, when he’s done he looks at you, “Sound good?”

“Great,” you say. ~~It’s not great.~~

You tell Dr. Drocsid to have a nice day and hang up. You lean over and press the palms of your hands over your eyes, taking a deep breath you let out a frustrated groan. You don’t want to take more meds, out of everything that is the exact opposite of what you’re aiming for. You start to shake, “Damnit...” you mumble. Why is your body betraying you like this? This isn’t fair. God, wouldn’t it be easier to just give up?

But you’re way past giving up, aren’t you?

You let out a deep sigh and think back to the sunset you saw in your vision at the hospital. The colors, the sound, the lights...at this point you’re fairly positive the sound was an auditory hallucination due to the painkillers in your system but you _know_ you didn’t hallucinate the lights. It happened the same time as the barrier trapping monsters broke. Thinking back to what you learned about their history, what monsters went through before being freed, you feel a pang of sympathy. Honestly, seeing how they never gave up on hope inspired you to keep going, holding on for a chance that you too would make it out as well. 

You catch movement from the corner of your eye as you see Impact stretch out and trot over to the kitchen door, beckoning you over with a little 'mreow'. You stand up from your position on the couch and briefly check your phone to confirm that it is time for dinner. You stretch your achy muscles as Impact stares you down and meows at you loudly. “I know Imp, I’m going.” You shuffle into the kitchen with Impact in tow, he takes a seat by his food dish as you go grab his meal for the night. You fill up his dish and Impact wastes no time munching away at his food, faint purring emitting from the little fur-ball.

You gather up some snacks and grab a can of strawberry water from the fridge before you head off to your bedroom. You settle down in bed and decide to unwind by watching some shows on your streaming service. You scroll through your watchlist looking for one show in particular, _My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic_ . You adore the series and it’s characters, watching the series never fails to bring a smile to your face. It's your comfort show and life’s too short to not let yourself enjoy it, even if it’s deemed “cringe”. You can watch and enjoy whatever you want, especially cute cartoons about colorful ~~lesbian~~ horses.

You end up re-watching the movie. It's fun and you hum along to the songs. When Tempest Shadow sings Open Up Your Eyes she has your full attention, you sadly know this one by heart. As she sings, you quietly sing along too. You get it, you used to be there. When you were hospitalized you were isolated, completely abandoned, no one checked up on you. 

~~You didn’t matter.~~

“I’m so sorry you felt so alone,” Twilight Sparkle tells Tempest Shadow.

“I saw the truth. My “friends” abandoned me when times got tough.” Tempest Shadow replies coldly.

Ouch.

It’s the smell of cigarettes that knocks you out of your daze. You pinch the bridge of your nose and cringe, the muffin you were eating loses its appeal. An all too familiar ache attacks your head shortly after. You pause your movie and rest your headphones on your neck, listening carefully to next door.

Yup, your neighbors are blasting their music.

You groan and sit up, your tablet shifts off your lap. You turn to face the wall and bang it with one of your fists. “Hey!” you yell and bang again, “Can you _please_ turn that down?” You look down at your watch and see the time and bang the wall one final time. “It’s one in the fuckin’ morning!” you add.

You pause, the music cuts off and you lie back down, content.

Without warning, the music is back and it’s worse and you shoot up, anger seething inside you. You **can’t** take this anymore. You hop out of bed furiously and plop right into your computer chair. You open a new tab to your email and click the compose button and type in your landlord’s email address, you’re breaking your lease. 

> Hello,
> 
> I’m very sorry to email you so late at night but I want to move out. I understand that you’re doing all you can about the other tenants but I can’t stay here and keep endangering myself like this. I hope you can understand. I’ll help you find someone to re-rent to speed up the process.
> 
> Thanks,
> 
> ___ Knight

You read it over a few times and click the send button. Anxiety bubbles up inside you, you quickly close the tab so you can’t overthink it.

Welp, there’s no turning back now.

You pick up your phone and open the UnderNet app and type in the username you saw on the flyer. UnderNet is a social network for monsters and is invite only, your besties set up your account when you met them at the mall. You like the UnderNet ‘cause it’s private, but in events like these, it’s kinda hard to get an idea of who you’re messaging; all you can see is an icon and bio. You tap the icon, it's a photo of a skeleton wearing sunglasses flexing in front of a mirror, it’s (clearly) been photoshopped to look like he has muscles. You check the bio, it's in all caps: FOOD CONNOISSEUR AND ALL-AROUND COOL DUDE!! You snort. OK, sounds legit to you. You tap the direct message button and nervously type out your message.

 **you**  
* Hi! Sorry to DM you so late @ night but I saw you’re looking for a roommate. Is the room still available? If I woke you up I am SO sorry!! Please don’t feel like you have to answer right away!

You place your phone down on your bed to finish your movie but as soon as you do your phone buzzes and lights up with a notification. CoolSkelton95 has, surprisingly, answered you immediately.

 **CoolSkelteton95**  
* HELLO!! NO WORRIES, YOU DID NOT WAKE ME I WAS UP.  
* YES! THE ROOM IS AVAILABLE.   
* WHEN CAN YOU SEE IT?

You peer at the calendar hanging on your wall and double check on your phone. You’re completely free tomorrow, you could take the morning bus and take the time to explore New New Home before you check out the house and room. You sit down on your bed and type out your response.

 **you  
*** I’m free tomorrow and can stop by sometime! Is that OK with you?

 **CoolSkeleton95**  
* TOMORROW IS PERFECT!!

 **you  
*** Awesome! Then I’ll be there sometime tomorrow!

 **CoolSkeleton95  
** ***** WONDERFUL! I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING YOU!!

You send a quick “You too!” before setting multiple alarms so you don’t miss the bus and go back to your movie. As the movie reaches its end Songbird Serenade, voiced by Sia, starts to perform Rainbow, you can’t deny the smile that spreads across your face as you hum along. You let the rest of the credits play as you shuffle out of bed to do your nightly routine: you change into pajamas, wash your face, brush your teeth and take your night meds. Afterwards, you crawl back into bed and Impact cuddles up next to you and purrs when you finally drift off to sleep.

★

Your landlord had replied to your email early in the morning and said that he was sad to see you go but he understands and appreciates the help, so now there really is no going back.

Also, you stupidly slept through every alarm you set, so you don’t have the time to explore like you wanted to. Nor did you have the time to dress up, instead, you shoved your fav hoodie and a pair of jeans on and slid into your sneakers as you scrambled out the door to catch the next bus.

You let out a sigh as you look up at the house in front of you, it’s the same one you’d admired a week ago. You tilt your head. Huh, what are the odds? You carefully step up the steps to the door and press the doorbell, the door opens almost immediately and you’re met with a skeleton monster that towers above you.

“Oh!” you gasp as it hits you and point up at the monster, “Cool _Skeleton_ 95!” You didn’t really make the connection, your icon on the UnderNet is one of your fav anime girls from a game you play so you didn’t consider that CoolSkeleton95’s pic was of, well, him.

“YES. THAT IS ME.” he booms loudly and your head starts to ache immediately. The monster stands proudly with his gloved hands on his hips, he looks like a superhero as his scarf flutters in the wind, “HELLO TINY HUMAN! ARE YOU THE NEW ROOMIE?”

“Yup!” you say, nodding, “er, at least I hope so?” You hold out your hand and tell him your name. His grip on your hand is strong and he shakes it so vigorously that you end up feeling dizzy.

“WHAT A LOVELY NAME! HELLO, MISS ___, I AM THE GREAT PAPYRUS!” 

You smile, “It's nice to meet you, Papyrus!”

Papyrus invites you inside and tells you you can look around before he shows you your room. The kitchen is the first thing you see, it’s open with tile flooring, marble countertops and wooden cabinets; there's a sliding glass door that leads out to the backyard where you can see a netted trampoline and a shed. You turn to the left and see the living room, there’s a wide-screen TV with several gaming systems on the TV stand; you see a copy of _Portal 2_ sitting on the top while various video games, DVDs and VHS tapes are on the shelf. There’s a coffee table with a puzzle halfway finished, a checkers set and a couple of board games. The couch is green and there’s a huge bean bag next to it. Beside the couch is a side table with a lamp and a single joke book, you’re curious, but you shrug and press on. You find the washer and dryer that are currently running in a linen closet and a tiny bathroom beside it next to the staircase. Upstairs you can see two rooms, on the left the door is covered in caution tape and warning signs and to the right you can see multi-colored lights seeping under the door, a painting of bones is hung on the wall in between the two rooms. Papyrus tells you that that’s his and his brother’s room and asks if you’d like to see yours. You’re fairly happy with what you’ve seen so far so you nod and follow Papyrus.

You let out a sigh of relief when you find out your room is on the first floor - you and stairs do not get along. Papyrus leads you all the way to the right of the house and opens the door and you walk into the empty room. You head over to the closet, checking the space before moving on to the bathroom. You look around the bathroom, noting that the countertops and cabinets look the same as the ones in the kitchen. Everything seems to be good but you need to be absolutely sure...

When you take your bag off and reach into it to grab your measuring tape and notebook you hear Papyrus gasp, you tilt your head and eye him curiously.

“YOUR BACKPACK!” He responds, he’s _beaming_ , “I RECOGNIZE THAT CHARACTER!”

You blink, a bit confused, there are _a lot_ of characters in your ita-bag. “Um, which one?”

Papyrus points to the button of Pinkie Pie and you just stand there, surprised.

“I THINK IT IS A WONDERFUL SHOW ABOUT FRIENDSHIP!”

You smile in relief. “It is!” you agree, nodding, “I’ve seen all nine seasons and the movies!”

Papyrus gasps, his eyes are twinkling, “THERE ARE MOVIES?”

You laugh and you and Papyrus continue to chat as you get back to checking the room. Papyrus helps you hold the measuring tape, you made sure to measure your bed, desk and a few other items before heading out and jotted it down in your notebook. You marked the page with a sticky note so you’d find the measurements right away. It’s a tight squeeze, but it’d work...you bite your nail as you try to imagine where your belongings would go.

After a beat, Papyrus speaks up, “SO...WHAT DO YOU THINK?”

This place has its own charm and you really like Papyrus, he’s fun to be around. You could definitely see yourself living here. “I like it!” you say, “I’d _love_ to move here...but…” You trail off as you put your tape and notebook back in your bag then look up at Papyrus, messing with your hoodie strings. “I’m in the process of breaking my lease...so I can’t move in right away. Can you wait?”

I DO NOT ENTIRELY UNDERSTAND WHAT THAT MEANS,” Papyrus responds, “BUT I WOULD VERY MUCH LIKE FOR YOU TO BE OUR ROOMMATE!”

You explain what you mean and Papyrus listens, nodding a few times. You can see him get worried and you do your best to assure him that you’ll be OK. You can’t set up a date but you tell him you’ll text him updates and he hands you his phone and you give him yours so you can exchange numbers; you type in your name with a cute emoji beside it, Papyrus sets his contact name as THE GREAT PAPYRUS. You’re not going to change that.

Afterwards, you ask if he and his brother are OK with pets and Papyrus answers with, “NO DOGS.” His eyes dart to the side, “ESPECIALLY, SMALL, WHITE, ANNOYING ONES.”

You find that oddly specific and let out a ‘snrrk!’ as you pull out your phone and show Papyrus a picture of Impact, needless to say he was downright smitten. You continue to show Papyrus more photos of Impact and chat for a bit. Papyrus glances up at the wall in front of you and smiles, looking excited. “MY BROTHER WILL BE HERE SOON! WOULD YOU LIKE TO STAY FOR DINNER SO YOU TWO CAN MEET?”

You look up at the clock and note that your bus will arrive in 15 minutes. You look over to Papyrus, his stare resembling that of a puppy... you feel sad that you can’t stay. “I’d really like to, but I took the bus here...”

He looks sad, but quickly recovers a moment later with an understanding smile. “THAT IS OK, WE CAN TRY AGAIN SOME OTHER TIME! I HOPE YOU HAVE A SAFE TRIP HOME!”

You assure Papyrus that you’ll be safe and say your goodbyes as you dash away, beaming. The wind picks up, stirring up the stray cherry blossoms petals that rest on the sidewalk in front of you. You watch as the petals dance and flutter in the breeze, you twirl along with them. Your body is aching but you don’t care, you’re bursting with energy! You arrive at the bus stop feeling light on your feet, as you wait you pull out your phone and draft a post to re-rent your apartment. There’s a lot of work ahead but the rush of excitement you feel fuels you, the journey of a new beginning awaits. You’re moving to New New Home!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> did you know Papyrus' fav show was going to be My Little Boney


End file.
